The Fifth Elephant Discussion *Spoilers*

[The Mad Collector]

I find that reading them and then listening to Stephen Briggs read them a few weeks later helps me pick up on the sub plots and meanings.

[ChristianBecker]

I love the TFE to bits.
Most of you have already enumerated all the reasons already before.

But there is one reason that has not been listed here yet.
I found that TP's books have this marvelous way of showing you a picture of a vase for most of the book and suddenly when you see the vase again, its suddenly is 2 faces!

It happened to me in Men at arms, when the gonne suddenly meant a gun.
It happened to me in this book when the fat deposits suddenly became oil and suddenly all the oil politics of our world was refracted through the discworld prism in this book.

I love those moments in the discworld books. Has anyone else had these moments?

Of course. And for me that is what makes TP's books so good. That and that he is able to mix even serious topics with his great humour.
I think except for equal rites I've read every book (I own) more than once, and there's always something to discover you didn't get the first time.

[raisindot]

I agree with you totally, Pi. TFE is my favorite DW books.

However, I don't think that all DW books necessarily deliver 'deeper' meanings on repeated readings.

For me, most of the pre-Mort books don't carry that much literary depth, and none of the Rincewind books (except maybe The Lost Continent) merit deep analysis.